PROSCIUTTO AND BONARDA (SAN HUBERTO 2012)

The first salami and Argentine red wine pairing is a light flavor combo that will dance across your taste buds. If there’s one cured meat that could be considered delicate, Prosciutto is it. Not so much that you don’t notice its earthy sweetness, but it comes in quietly, with grace. Bonarda wine, from a grape produced only in Argentina, is much the same. It’s light bodied with a medium acidity, but still whispers deep truths about plum and cherry. Together, they are the dapper, elegant couple in the corner of the ball, with eyes only for each other.

CHORIZO AND CABERNET SAUVIGNON (CATENA 2012)

The next salami and Argentine red wine pairing is a feisty mix of spice. In Argentina, it’s common to cook raw chorizo (with many other meats) over an open fire at an Asado. But we’ve got cured Chorizo, and it’s really, really good. And we wanted to eat it with red wine, open fire or not. The smoked paprika, flavoring and coloring the meat, isn’t overpowered by the cab, which gives off notes of black pepper and blackberries. Together, they are the first ones to tango onto the dance floor.

GENOA AND MALBEC (ARUMA 2014)

This final salami and Argentine red wine pairing perfectly marries rich flavors of savory and sweet. The tender, slightly sweet Genoa is the Miss Congeniality of the salami world – she plays well with others. A mild garlic flavor and smooth texture happily make friends with the malbec, Argentina’s most famous wine, without shying away from its full­bodied jamminess. Together, they are the ones in the midst of all the fun and laughter.

PEPPERONI, VERMENTINO, CANARY MELON (2014 COLLE DEI BARDELLINI VIGNA U MUNTE VERMENTINO)

When cocktail hour rolls around and you’re in the mood for something familiar, yet still with a little swing, a little verve. Our first salami, white wine and melon pairing achieves just that. Set up a platter of Pepperoni and yellow honey melon slices. Then pour a cool glass of Vermentino, a bright, light-bodied, almost tingly white primarily from the coastal regions of Italy. It doesn’t fight with the zippy pepperoni — always a crowd pleaser — and the succulent melon coats everything with sweet silk. Cue up Sinatra’s “Fly Me to the Moon” and settle into your comfy chair.

Genoa SALAMI, SOAVE, CANTALOUPE (2012 SANTI ‘VIGNETI DI MONTEFORTE’ SOAVE CLASSICO)

Mel Torme has earned his moniker The Velvet Fog, and for good reason. So for our second salami, white wine and melon pairing, we’ve paired a velvety wine from Italy’s Veneto region in the northeast with a rich, finely ground, satiny Genoa Salami. We think it’s a hit with musky, floral cantaloupe and less predictable than the prosciutto that would normally come wrapped around the fruit. It’s a trio that will get under your skin.

Sopressata, PINOT BIANCO, HONEYDEW (2014 ST. PAUL’S PLOTZNER PINOT BIANCO)

Our final salami, white wine and melon pairing brings together sweet and smokey flavors in perfect harmony. The luminous green honeydew is the sweetest of the bunch, and when enveloped with a swallow of minerally Pinot Blanco from the northeast region of Italy, becomes something transporting. Slip in a slice of Sopressata — and the earthy undertones of the wine come through while the acid cuts the fat. You might just break out in song. We recommend Peggy Lee’s “Fever.” Then hold on tight.

SAISON WITH BRESAOLA

Our first craft beer and salami pairing combines a rustic, tart ale matched with the leanest of the salami offerings. A delicate allspice flavor lacing the just-as-delicately textured Bresaola gets a nudge in the right direction from the mildly yeasty and fruity saison. The sweetness of the salami is offset a bit by the medium bitterness of the brew that finishes dry.

SESSION IPA WITH FELINO

It’s easy to snack on the fatty, salty, porky discs of Felino when you’ve got a clean, bright, fruity beer to wash it down. The subtle white pepper aftertaste of the beer in this craft beer and salami pairing complements the peppery sausage perfectly. Session beers are meant to be drunk all day because they have a lower alcohol content than their cousins, the traditional hop-forward IPA. Don’t worry, there are still hops in this beer, just not in quantities that kill your taste buds. You want to taste your food, after all.

OKTOBERFEST WITH COPPA

Spicy Coppa: No ring of fire here, but this Spicy Coppa still fills your mouth with some heat that the malty sweet notes of an Oktoberfest quench nicely. Tender, earthy and fatty but not greasy, the salami reacts well to a little raisin finish in the beer. Low hops aid the fire factor, too.

Can’t find Spicy Coppa for your craft beer and salami pairing? Mild Coppa pairs well for many of the same reasons. It’s the eternal dance of salty and sweet; the complex salinity of the Coppa draws out the sweet notes in the beer. And the absence of heat lets the concentrated pork flavor take center stage, balancing effortlessly with the fruity fall notes in Oktoberfest.